The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1887-07-16

STANLEY AS a REPORTER.
An Old Newspaper Man Gives Some Rem.
iniscences Of the Great Explorer.
A gentleman who served on the local
staff Of Western paper with Henry NJ
Stanley, before the now celebrated exc
plorer had started on his search for
Livingston. tells some very interesting
stories of the friend Of the King of tho
Belgians. II met Stanley the last time
he was in New York." said this gentle.
man. "and was greatly surprised to
see that he still retains the appearance
of young man. In fact, he did not
appear day older than he was when
he left Omaha nearly twenty years ago.
When made a close examination. how
ever, this phenomenon was accounted
for. He is, / found, q liberal patron Of
hair dyes, and he is made up as much
as any actor on the stage. Henry was
always great on makeup 1t was his
great ability in making something out
Of nothing that brought him into dis
creditin Omaha when the first report
of his successful search for Livingstone
was sent across the water"
ssTo what do you referf"
STANLEY and l were local reporters
together in one of the frontier towns
when the Pixies Peak excitement was at
its height Stanley was also the cor
respondent of several Eastern papers.
1t was supposed that we, on the extreme
edge of civilization, had extensive fa-
cilities for collecting advance news
from the seat of the excitement, and
Stanley was not the boy to let the chance
to make dollar slip, because real news
was scarce. His correspondence to his
Eastern connections was filed with the
most glowing and blood-curdling ac-
counts of the trials and tribulations Of
the men whose shibboleth was Pixies
Peak or Bust Not day passed that
he did not grind out column Of horrors.
/, One day thrilling account Of an Indian
massacre would startle the good people
of Boston, New York or Philadelphia
The next morning he would tell Ola
outbreak of the lawless element in which
there would be fifteen or twenty killed.
Then would follow story of the won
derful discovery of fabulous sum Of
gold by party of prospectors. All
| these stories would be made more real
| istic by the names of the killed and
wounded and the exact hour in the day
when each event occurred. In fact,
they bore every indication Of profound
truth, and they were doubtless believed
| by those who read them. Each story
ostensibly came from the mouth Of
some disguised miner who had started
ON his return to his home in the East.
They were in fact perfect works Of
fiction and did great credit to Stanley
imagination. /"
.sThen the people of Omaha do NOT
take much stock in the reports Of his
successful trip into the interior Of Africa
this timer
20, 1 don't know much about the
feeling towards Stanley there now. A
new population has grown up in the
West since he resided among us. and
those who live in Omaha now are moi
acquainted with him..
HAS he ever been to visit the scenes
of his early triumphs since the discov'
cry of Livingstone?"
Eyes, he was there soon after his first
return to America, About the frs
thing he said was in the nature OF abuse
for the incredulity with which the peo
pie of Omaha had received the reports
of his trip to Ujiji. Ireminded him o
the Pixies Peak stories, and he seemed
70 be satisfied. - Washington Cor. Bos
ton Post